Run many existing productivity and business programs designed for Windows XP-if not pre-installed, it can be downloaded free from Microsoft

Windows 7 Professional (includes 32 & 64-bit versions) lets you run Windows XP productivity programs in Windows XP Mode, recover data easily with automatic backups to your home or business network, connect to company networks effortlessly and more securely

Make the things you do every day easier with improved desktop navigation; start programs faster and more easily, and quickly find the documents you use most often

Product Description

Amazon.ca Product Description

Windows 7 Professional has everything you need for work and home, including all the Home Premium features you love and the business features your work demands.

From Amazon.ca

With Windows 7 Professional, fewer walls stand between you and your success. You can run many Windows XP productivity programs in Windows XP Mode and recover data easily with automatic backups to your home or business network. You can also connect to company networks effortlessly and more securely with Domain Join. With all the exciting entertainment features of Windows Home Premium, it's a great choice for home and for business. Need to use multiple languages on your PC or help protect your data with enhanced BitLocker security? Get Windows 7 Ultimate.

Manage lots of open programs, documents, and browser windows easily with thumbnail and full-screen previews of open windows. Click to enlarge.

With Snap you can arrange two windows side-by-side just by dragging them to opposite sides of your screen. Click to enlarge.

Open files you use regularly in just two clicks with Jump Lists on the improved taskbar.

Everything you need for work and home

Easiest Windows to use ever

Simplify your PC with new navigation features like Aero Shake, Jump Lists, and Snap.

Customize Windows to look and feel the way you like by changing themes and taskbar programs.

Easy to network (with or without a server).

Back up your complete system over a network.

Faster and more flexible

Windows XP Mode gives you the business flexibility you need.

Designed to make your PC sleep and resume quicker.

Takes full advantage of 64-bit PC hardware and memory.

Best PC entertainment experience

Watch, pause, rewind, and record TV with Windows Media Center.

Blu-ray read/write support for data files.

Includes integrated video and Dolby audio codecs.

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Simplifies Everyday Tasks

Simple to use

Preview Manage lots of open programs, documents, and browser windows easily with thumbnail and full-screen previews of open windows.

Pin Open files and get around your PC faster with the improved taskbar. You can easily pin programs you use often to the taskbar and launch them in just one click.

Windows 7 lets you peek behind open windows to get a quick look at your desktop. Click to enlarge.

Instantly locate and open virtually any file on your PC right from the Start menu with Windows Search. Click to enlarge.

Jump Lists Open files you use regularly in just two clicks with Jump Lists on the improved taskbar.

Snap Windows 7 has simple new ways to manage open windows. For example, with Snap you can arrange two windows side-by-side just by dragging them to opposite sides of your screen.

Peek and Shake Windows 7 lets you peek behind open windows to get a quick look at your desktop.

Windows Search Instantly locate and open virtually any file on your PC, from documents to emails to songs, right from the Start menu, with Windows Search.

Easy to connect

Setting up wireless connections is easier with consistent, one-click connections to available networks. Click to enlarge.

Enjoy the photos, music, and videos on your home PC when you're away from home with remote media streaming. Click to enlarge.

Windows Touch makes PCs with touch screens easier and more intuitive to use. Click to enlarge.

Wireless setup With Windows 7, setting up wireless connections is easier with consistent, one-click connections to available networks, whether those networks are based on Wi-Fi, mobile broadband, dial-up, or corporate VPN.

HomeGroup Connect Windows 7 PCs on a home network in just four clicks and easily get to the photos, music, and files on each one--even share printers--with HomeGroup.

Easy to browse the web

Internet Explorer 8 Visual search helps you quickly find the information you want by adding visual cues and previews to search results from top search providers including Live Search, Wikipedia, Yahoo, Amazon, and others.

Internet Explorer 8 Use Web slices to conveniently keep up with changes on frequently updated websites, like eBay auctions or traffic sites, directly from the IE8 toolbar.

New ways to engage

Media on your terms

Windows Media Player More and more consumer electronics, from TVs to digital photo frames, can be connected to home networks. With Play To in Windows 7, you'll be able to easily send music, photos, videos from your PC to a networked device throughout your home.

You can enjoy the photos, music, and videos on your home PC when you're away from home with remote media streaming.

Work anywhere

Location Aware Printing Windows 7 will automatically pick the right printer for you when you move from home to work networks.

Most helpful customer reviews

Windows 7 fixes everything that was wrong with Vista. Upon installing, I had zero compatibility problems. I had hardware that's over 6 years old install without any hitches. Programs that are supposed to only work with XP ended up working in Windows 7 (although, some required running as administrator, but few required running in compatibility mode). A select few of those programs from XP never ran in Vista but they run in Windows 7 (and may run in Vista due to recent compatibility updates).

The user interface is enhanced from Vista but keeps Vista elements such as the new start menu. New additions include using only icons on the taskbar and little preview windows that pop up when hovering over an icon for an open program on the task bar. This feature seems somewhat useless for single windowed programs but it is very useful for multiple windowed programs or when there are multiple explorer windows open (no need to alt-tab through all open explorer windows before getting to the correct one).

With a recent computer and video card (past couple of years) Windows 7 will run flawlessly and thanks to program ram caching, programs that have been previously opened will often open in the blink of an eye after being closed (unless they have been replaced in the cache).

I love this version of Windows. I still use a desktop as a workstation, and want to continue to do so.

When I have a need for portable devices with touch screens, I will probably enjoy things like Windows 8.

The thing is, a desktop provides me with a reasonably ergonomic environment to use a computer - screen at a good height as well as size / resolution; keyboard (preferably NOT black!!!) that gives me some touch resistance and allows me to use typing skills; a variety of other input devices and media players / connections. To get the same hardware for games and everyday apps on laptops is still a very pricey option; and laptops are physically uncomfortable to work at / on for any length of time. You can only improve that by setting up so many accessories you might as well used a desktop (but can't beat taking your machine with you!)

I think Windows 7 (especially with the accommodation for XP apps) is probably the last, and best, Windows operating system for computers I use typing input with. Looks good and works fast.

Generally, I like Windows 7. I had the home premium version on my Asus gaming computer but I wanted the ability to use some of my older software so I purchased Windows 7 Professional. The install was fairly simple except that you cannot upgrade an existing version of 7 without reformatting your hard drive. This meant reinstalling all my software. Further, it also meant I had to go online and find drivers for my bluray player, my sound and video cards, etc. It ended up being a lot of work. On the plus side, the computer seems to run faster without some of the bloat ware that it came with originally. However, the feature that allows you to run programs in XP mode does not work as well as one would hope. It works fine for some programs and not at all for others. It is nice to have my own OS but I am not sure all the hassle was worth it.

Damaged in shipping. While the outer case has multiple cushioning devices the discs themselves are left to vibrate against each other during the entire shipping process. The packaging, or rather the lack of any insight or forethought is responsible for this destruction during shipping.I had problems trying to install and setup windows 7 with this damaged disk. Whoever thought of the packaging is surely an idiot! To have the 32 and 64 disks info side face each other and then to rub together inside the package is pure stupidity. Its as if Microsoft designed it to fail on purpose. After loading and set-up several times I eventually got windows 7 installed and working, extra star for my own efforts.

I was using a Microsoft Vista operating system in my Dell XPS 420 computer and it worked okay, but did not want to run my HP printer and Epson Scanner and there weren't any upgrades for Vista that were good enough for what I wanted to do, so I bought the Microsoft Windows 7 Professional which also has the XP Mode which will run my present printer and scanner, although Window 7 seems to run the just fine so far.